LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management committee chairman Najam Sethi said if Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Jai Shah wants to head the International Cricket Council (ICC) in future, he should resolve the Asia Cup issue amicably.
Shah, who is also the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has ruled out sending his team to Pakistan this year. Asia Cup and said that the event should be held at a neutral venue.
“I think J [Shah] A young man, he wants to head the ICC,” said Sethi. “My advice to my young friend would be if you want to be a leader you have to keep the herd together, keep the herd together. It should not be said that the ACC was disbanded when you were the ACC chair.
Sethi also said that PCB has always helped other Asian countries in difficult times. “When the Australians withdrew their matches with Afghanistan we said we will step in and bail you out so you get some money from these matches.”
He added, “We were very forthcoming to supporting members who would get into any kind of trouble … Now we don’t have any problem and others don’t have any problem with us. It’s just India.”
He also talked about the hybrid model for the Asia Cup, which would allow India to play their matches at a neutral venue and the rest of the tournament to be held in Pakistan.
“Until India is ready to play Pakistan bilaterally and in Pakistan, let’s have a hybrid solution,” he said.
“I didn’t threaten anybody, give me a break,” Sethi said. “I am trying to be positive and find a way out of this problem. I could have easily said that if India does not come and play in Pakistan, we will not play in India, but I have tried to find a hybrid model.”
However, the Indian cricket board is unlikely to adopt the PCB’s proposed hybrid model.
Despite being regarded as one of the game’s greatest rivals, India and Pakistan have not met on home soil in any edition of the game since 2012 and have only played each other in multinational tournaments on a neutral basis.
